Lemme tell you a story... so there I was, drenched to the bone and covered in mud, sweat, and…read moreprobably a few tears after an 18 mile jaunt through an overly muddy 100-Mile Wilderness. My hiking buddy Sriracha and I had managed to lose the blazes in the middle of our hike and wound up in a bog, nearly fell from a man-made foot bridge, and possibly inhaled a bit too much DEET 100. I'd been reading up on various spots to stop and resupply in the wilderness for quite some time - White House Landing always popped up on the list, so we planned on making that the daily terminus of our trek. After spotting the "signs" and picking up the very well blazed trail, we wove through the forest as the sun began to set. The darkness and shadows surrounded us as we reached a lonely pier on an even more lonely lake. Attached to a nearby tree was an air-horn - with a sound akin to the trumpeting of 10,000 high school bands, the resonating blast emitted from the horn echoed across the still cold waters. We stood on the end of the pier and we waited. A few minutes passed and we heard the far off distant cry of a boat motor. There it was - salvation upon the mirrored lake, coming to carry us home... or at least to the camp! We were greeted by pizza. Not just any pizza, but massive pizza. It was like heaven in the middle of Maine - which is like heaven on Earth... so maybe it's like heaven's heaven? Perhaps that's too philosophical. Either way, the food was great and expectantly pricey (you're in the middle of nowhere kids...). The camp offered a variety of accommodations, from a massive bunkhouse (complete with fireplace) to small lake-side cabins. I explored them all and can attest that they were all very clean, well stocked with all you'd expect in a wilderness camp, and quite comfortable with fresh-linens and the ever-so-coveted plush camp towels. The shower room was large and had enough stalls to prevent hiker traffic-jams: as a side-note, be sure to head the warning to limit your shower-time. The water is drawn up from the lake (by hand when I visited) into a central cistern which takes a bit of time and effort - so be respectful with your showers. Aside from the basic amenities, the camp offers a great little store beside their kitchen/dining area for resupply. I say great because sometimes even a can of Vienna Sausages and a new toothbrush can make your day!
Let me finalize by giving the reason for four instead of five stars. My experience here was great - most likely a 4.5 (which I normally round up). However, there have been a string of negative posts and self-relayed stories to me about how the service was bad, attitudes were bad, food was bad, etc. While I am not one to base my reviews on other's opinions, I feel that it is important to relay the long-standing feelings of other hikers and thus weight them within my review. The hosts did seem a bit impatient with getting us out of the camp in the morning but otherwise were very gracious. The food was exceptional and in some hiker's opinions, the burgers are legendary. Overall, I can summarize my review with a question - what do you expect from a place that's buried deep within the 100-Mile Wilderness? The answer is this - a bed, a warm greeting, and some basic supplies. I received all of these things, and as such I was satisfied. Give it a shot if you're hiking thru!
